


Her Prince Charming

by AceofDreams



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Character Study, F/M, Fluff and Angst, IS please let them support at least, The angst is contained to the very end, black eagles path, pre-release
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-12
Updated: 2019-07-12
Packaged: 2020-06-27 01:04:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19780060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceofDreams/pseuds/AceofDreams
Summary: A series of moments focused on Bernadetta and her feelings towards Sylvain. Set in a Black Eagles path, primarily before the time-skip.





	Her Prince Charming

Bernadetta had always dreamed of a prince charming.

Her mother had read to her at night, telling stories of handsome knights swooping in to rescue ladies from evil. When her mother decided she was too old for bedtime stories, Bernadetta sought out the books on her own, poring over the drawings of men in shiny armor and women in fine gowns. Over time, she came to know the stories by heart, reciting them to herself when she was far away from her books. She saw them when she closed her eyes, her dreams an endless parade of knights and their lovers.

As Bernadetta withdrew from the world, her fascination shifted. It was no longer enough to just observe these tales; she wanted to be part of one. She knew the ladies in the stories waited for their heroes to come, kept in place by a spell, monster, or overprotective parents, but Bernadetta wasn’t patient enough to wait around. She snuck out to her family’s barracks, sure that she would find her prince charming inside her own castle. Hidden above, she eagerly spied down on the soldiers, the image of a handsome knight stuck in her mind. Unfortunately, reality held no match. There were many knights, young, old, men, women, but none were the shining image of hope she dreamed of. And so, Bernadetta retreated into her fantasies once again, praying that her wait would not last long.

...

Her parents had told her that she had such a great opportunity in going to the Officers Academy. They had gone on and on about all the friends she would make, the top-notch instruction she would receive, and the real-world battle experience she would gain.

Bernadetta cared for none of that. She wanted nothing to do with “bonding experiences” and she hated the idea of sitting in a lecture surrounded by others. As far as she was concerned, the Academy would be a cage, and she would be the songbird trapped within.

And yet, that image sparked a sliver of hope. Wasn’t a princess, mercilessly locked away, the perfect situation for a prince charming to show up?

...

She feared her heart might pound its way out of her chest. There on the far side of the courtyard was a man who looked like he had leapt straight out of her fairy tale books. He was, without a doubt, the most handsome man she had ever seen. His skin glowed, his hair shone, his eyes sparkled. He had the sleeves of his uniform rolled up, revealing muscular arms. Time seemed to slow as he ran a hand through his stunningly red hair, the locks falling back into place gracefully.

“Who is he?” The words came out unintentionally, breaking the silence she had been so appreciative of.

Edelgard turned and followed Bernadetta’s eyes. “Oh, Sylvain? He’s a member of the Blue Lions. He’s the heir to the earldom of Gautier.”

Bernadetta froze as Sylvain glanced up towards them, as if he had somehow overheard from across the courtyard. She prayed to Seiros that he hadn’t noticed her staring. While she had dreamed of meeting her prince charming, she had no real plan as to what to do in such a situation. It would be easier if they were escaping danger, maybe running from a beast, not standing in a school courtyard preparing to make small talk. Her prayers grew more panicked as he began walking towards them.

“I-I, I need to...” She spun around, looking for any exit, any way to escape.

“Bernadetta?” Edelgard stared at her, realization dawning on her face. “What about the rest of the tour? You’ve barely seen anything—“

“It’s fine!” Bernadetta squealed, eyes darting around. “I’ll figure it out later!”

“Hey, Edelgard!” It was a male voice, close.

“I have to go!” Bernadetta bolted. She had spent years dreaming of a prince charming, but she wasn’t the same girl she had once been. This Bernadetta didn’t dream of adventures; this Bernadetta dreamed of being rescued, from the Academy and from herself.

...

Bernadetta closed her eyes, taking a moment to listen to the noises of the night. The cicada chirps and pitter patter of cat feet felt a world away from the constant chattering she heard from the courtyard during the day. Having the whole area to herself was more than worth the wait.

She opened her eyes, zeroing in on the target set up in front of her. Settling into the familiar stance, she raised her bow. The mantra her father had taught her long ago ran through her mind: nock, draw, aim, release. Her arrow flew through the air, striking the center of the target and she smiled.

“Nice shot!”

Bernadetta jumped, her bow clattering to the ground in front of her. The perfect nightly atmosphere had shattered. How could she not notice someone approaching? How could she notice him approaching?

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. I thought you knew I was here.”

He was standing in front of her now. One hand ruffled his red hair sheepishly, the other held her bow out to her.

“It’s fine.” The words tumbled out, meshing into each other. She grabbed the bow with too much force, yanking it out of his hand. “Thanks.”

“Do you always practice at night? I had no idea you were so dedicated!”

Bernadetta felt her face flush as he smiled at her. Sure, they had talked before, but never just the two of them, never with him standing so close to her, never with no one else around.

He seemed to take her silence as a sign of humility and pressed on. “You shouldn’t have to practice alone. How about I join you tomorrow night?”

Sylvain...was asking if he could spend time with her. It took all of Bernadetta’s willpower to keep from screaming. Yes, this solitary time was precious to her, but here was her chance to be alone with Sylvain. Her choice was clear.

“That, uh, sounds good.” Bernadetta gave a small smile as Sylvain beamed at her. How could she say no to someone so...charming?

...

Even though she clung to the edge of the room, Bernadetta felt proud at having attended the ball at all. While she insisted she only came so her friends would quit pestering her about it, she was grateful that they cared too much to let her skip out on such a big event. Honestly, she probably would have forced herself to attend even if they hadn’t made such a fuss. She had watched Dorothea, Ingrid, and Hilda sacrifice hours of their free time into planning the dance. What sort of friend was she if she didn’t see the finished product?

They had really outdone themselves. Strings of lanterns hung from the ceiling, casting a gentle glow upon the room. Light blue flowers were at the center of each table, still in their pots so they could be returned to the greenhouse afterwards. The students were all in their finest clothes, an array of colors in the crowd. Even Raphael was dressed up, wearing a properly fitted shirt for the first time since she had met him. Manuela herself sang for them, her voice accenting the instrumentalists beautifully. It felt...magical.

Edelgard approached her, outfitted in her signature shade of red. “You mustn’t hide over here for the entire night.” She locked arms with Bernadetta before the other girl could protest. “Come now.”

Bernadetta let out a squawk as Edelgard pulled her forward, but walked with the girl quietly. She knew she’d be forced out of her comfort zone sooner or later; better to get it over with now.

Edelgard had led her over to the edge of the dance floor, where students moved to the music in pairs.

It wasn’t difficult to spot him. Truth be told, a good portion for her time off to the side had been spent doing just that, watching him go from partner to partner. Sylvain almost seemed intent on dancing with every girl attending. It was easy enough for a seed of jealousy to sprout within her, but she shoved it down when she realized how true his intentions were. He danced with girls he flavored for flirtations, but also girls who he treated like siblings, girls who were already in relationships. Sylvain was making sure every girl got to dance.

The couples came to a stop as Manuela finished her current song. The students applauded their professor before bowing to their current partner and moving on to find another.

Bernadetta’s cheeks flushed as she realized Sylvain had ended the dance on the edge of the circle right near them.

His head turned and his eyes met hers, widening slightly. “Bernie, you’re going to dance?”

His last partner was Dorothea, looking radiant in a gown that showed off her figure and reminded Bernadetta of what she lacked. She swept forward, taking Bernadetta’s arm from Edelgard. “Why don’t you swap in for me?” She leaned in close to Bernadetta’s ear and whispered. “Have fun.”

Bernadetta’s blush deepened as she noticed Edelgard winking at her before the girl linked arms with Dorothea and walked off. She had been set up. Edelgard’s timing hadn’t been random; the two of them must have planned this. Truthfully, Bernadetta wasn’t sure if she was angry or grateful. She supposed she could decide later.

“They’re about to start again.” Sylvain stepped forward to meet her, gently placing his hands on her body.

Bernadetta followed suit and the two began to move to the music, a dance most noble children were taught at an early age. She let herself focus on the familiar rhythm, keeping her eyes down.

“You look nice tonight.” Sylvain’s voice was soft, barely above a whisper.

Bernadetta raised her eyes to find him staring down at her, a small smile on his face. Her heart fluttered and as she started to imagine what it would feel like to kiss him, she forced herself to look away. “You look nice too.” Though she always thought he looked nice, his formal wear reminded her of a knight who has defeated the beast and no longer needed his armor.

“You up for training after the dance?”

His question caught her off guard and she looked up at him, confusion evident on her face. “You still want to train tonight? Are you really going to have any energy left after all that dancing?”

He laughed. “Come on, I’m not that easily bested. Besides,” he rose an eyebrow, “I’d like to see how well you can fight in a dress like that.”

Bernadetta pouted and swatted him with the back of her hand. “You can’t hit the targets normally, why would you be able to while tired?”

“Hey, I can hit them with a javelin just fine!” He scrunched up his face, drawing a laugh from Bernadetta. “Not my fault that bows are inferior weapons.”

She bit back a retort as the song came to an end. “I guess we’ll have to decide that later then.”

Sylvain didn’t move, his hands still resting on her. “You’re already done dancing?”

“Well, uh...” Her cheeks flushed as she realized how close he was. “I just thought you’d be ready for another partner.” She avoided his eyes.

“Bernadetta.” His voice was soft as he took her hand with his own.

She gazed up at him, her heart already beating rapidly. Seeing him looking at her so gently... The chatter around her began to fade out until all she was aware of was him.

“I’ve been waiting to dance with you all night, I’m not going to let you go so early.” His face looked as red as hers felt. “Stay with me?”

In this situation, a lady would compose herself to face her lover with grace and dignity. But would a lady have bantered with her prince? Would he have teased her? Bernadetta had read no stories like that, yet she knew Sylvain was a prince charming and she was starting to feel like she might truly be his lady. So when she gave him a nod and he smiled, she figured that maybe there was more to those stories than what was written on the page.

...

It took no words; she knew already from the look on Byleth’s face.

“Where is he?”

Byleth pointed to the fort, now surrounded by Adrestian soldiers. “He retreated inside, but it’s only a matter of time before—“

Bernadetta didn’t stay to hear the end of Byleth’s sentence. She bolted, quiver bumping against her back and her bow clutched by white fingers. She had spent weeks dreading this moment, dreading having to face him again, and yet, she wanted nothing more than to see him.

She ran past the bodies of soldiers, armor too covered in blood to tell who they had fought for. She ran past her former classmates, each fighting their own battles. She kept running, past the fortress door, past the collapsed soldiers of Faerghus. Nothing else mattered now.

Bernadetta found him curled up on the stone floor, blood pooling around him. His hair was less tame now and he had grown a beard, but it was undoubtedly him.

“Sylvain.”

His eyes slowly opened, widening as he took her in. “You’re here.”

She rushed to him and sunk to her knees, gently resting his head in her lap.

He didn’t resist; she suspected that he was no longer capable of such movement. His voice was labored, as he struggled to pull in air, yet he was the same man she had met years ago. “It’s going to be okay, Bernadetta. Don’t cry.” 

Was she crying? She lifted her hand up to her face, barely able to process the tears running down her face. “I’m so—“

“No tears.” He smiled up at her. “It’s okay, you’re here.” 

She wanted to scream that no, it wasn’t okay, how could it be, but all that came out were whimpers.

He coughed, his eyes forced closed as shudders shook his body until finally, he was still.

Bernadetta was screaming. Her vision had clouded over and her hands were numb. There was no fairytale ending for her story and there never would be. Her prince charming was dead.


End file.
